


It wasn't your fault (case edition)

by Schreibmaschine



Series: Archive for my tumblr prompts [6]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-18
Updated: 2020-10-29
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:28:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,118
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27079600
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Schreibmaschine/pseuds/Schreibmaschine
Summary: Being a perfect machine doesn't mean he's immune to failure. But thankfully Nines has Gavin to cheer him up.
Relationships: Upgraded Connor | RK900/Gavin Reed
Series: Archive for my tumblr prompts [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1954156
Comments: 6
Kudos: 55





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This was prompted by the tumblr user scale-shark72!

‘So… the most advanced android Cyberlife has and will ever make failed to catch a petty crook. Care to explain?’  
RK900 and Gavin sat in Fowlers office and for once the android regretted his large figure. It made sinking into the chair so much more difficult. Next to him Gavin was pressing an ice pack onto his hastily patched up wounds. At least he didn’t back down. Instead he was defying his Captain in his usual undiplomatic Gavin-way.  
‘Cut him some slack, Captain! Only because he’s praised to be _the superior machine_ it doesn’t mean he is immune to emotion or can compensate human failure. And it’s not like the perp is some serial killer, for phck’s sake! It’s just a kid, dealing some red ice to his friends. We’ll get him next time.’  
‘You promised me last time you would get him _this_ time already. How do I know you mean it now?’  
‘Goddamnit, Fowler, calm down. We’ll get him, okay? What happened today was a total failure, I agree, but hell, you know how I react to getting frustrated. During the next week you will have the kid nice and cosy in a detention cell. And stop blaming Nines out of all people.’  
‘Fine. But when you two let him run again, you are on patrol duty for the near future and I’ll give the case to Anderson. Now get out and do your damn jobs!’

They strolled out of the glass cube, Gavin muttering curses under his breath while taking angry, determined steps towards the break room – most likely to get another coffee. RK900 tapped after him like a scolded dog. He had run analysis over analysis of the prior events, unable to find another way or any hint of what he did wrong. But he couldn’t find an outcome where they successfully caught the perp. Not without having Gavin multiple days in hospital at least.

‘Thank you for defending me’, the android started as Gavin stared at the streams of black flowing out of the machine. ‘But the Captain is right, I should have been better, I should have been able to expect complications and catch the criminal.’  
‘You really think that?’ Gavin took his cup and started walking back to their desk. ‘Stop apologizing, okay? Shit happens. Hadn’t you been there I would have fallen two storeys down to the street. It wasn’t your phcking fault we failed. If someone’s to blame it’s me for letting him push me off the edge or, well, him doing shit like that. Yes, had you not caught me, you might have been able to go after him. But every officer out there can tell you that they would care for their partner first any given time. You did the right thing. Phck Fowler, okay? He is not in the position to give you shit when you saved him my hospital costs. It is just a damn kid. We’ll get him.’  
‘How can you be so certain of that, Detective? We lost him today, it could happen again.’  
‘Of course it can happen again. But we fail, we try again. And we have each other’s backs, so don’t let anyone give you shit for doing the right thing, tin-can!’

The man let himself fall into his chair, putting down his mug and shooting RK900 a smug grin. ‘Now stop overthinking and put that metal brain of yours to some good use. We have a drug dealer to find!’


	2. Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was prompted by the AO3 user Valid_Opinion!

‘DPD, stop right there!’

Despite having to gasp for air, Gavin’s voice was booming over the corrugated metal roof of one of Detroit’s many warehouses. They were near the river and the roof had been patched up in many places. Nines knew the structural integrity of the thing wasn’t the best, but he wouldn’t dare voicing his concerns. Not when the drug dealer they had been chasing for months now was standing right in front of them. Gavin had his hand on his gun although his body language told Nines he wasn’t about to shoot the kid.

The boy turned around to them and pulled a grin. Nines guessed he wasn’t older than sixteen, the reason why they hadn’t focussed on him in the first place. Both of them had misjudged the situation and thought of the kid as an errant boy. But apparently, he was a lot cleverer than he seemed.  
‘You two again?’  
Nines clenched his jaws dangerously hard. He had been to Fowler’s office one too many times to not let that get to him. Sure, Gavin had told him to look at this like an endurance battle, but he had never been the patient one.  
‘Put your hands up where I can see them!’, Gavin called over. ‘You are arrested for illegal possession of drugs and distribution of them. My partner will handcuff you now. Don’t you dare move, you got us in enough trouble already.’  
The boy held up his hands, still grinning widely. Nines already had his handcuffs out and walked over, but that damned smile caught his attention. He was planning something.

And he should be proven true. The moment Nines had made it half-way over to him, he let his arms fall and jumped off the roof. Both human and android froze for a moment, before running over to the edge. Multiple crates and a forklift made for an easy descent and the boy was running away, laughing.  
‘Phck this’, Gavin sighed. ‘By now, I wouldn’t even mind the dream team taking over this case…’  
‘Oh, but I do.’ Nines was already about to follow the kid, but Gavin held him back. ‘Nines, you don’t have to prove anything here, we tried our best and-‘  
‘But I’m supposed to be better! I should be able to do it. Fowler is right, I-‘  
‘Fowler is wrong! Shit like this happens all the time, he just wanted to pressure us!’  
Nines gently pried Gavin’s hand away from his arm. ‘Maybe he is wrong then. But I won’t accept that. I have to prove this for myself. Stay here if you want, I’m going.’

It wasn’t really a question of wanting to. Gavin was too exhausted to continue. The boy had chased them through half Detroit and although he was fit, he couldn’t keep up. But as he saw Nines run off, pangs of guilt bothered him. He couldn’t leave his partner alone in this. Damn it, the android had helped him so many times, often to the point of risking his own health… Gavin had to at least try and follow.

Nines hadn’t wasted a thought on Gavin. The detective could fend for himself; he would just have to call a taxi to get him out of there after he had caught his breath again. No, Nines had to focus on his mission and the path the kid had taken. The hunt was on. His sensors picked up minute changes in the dust on the ground, tracing footstep after footstep. There was some faint residue warmth where the drug dealer had held onto the edge of a building to get around corners quicker. Turbulence in the calming air where a body had passed recently. He was made for this, he was designed for this, and he would be damned if he didn’t catch him this time. The humiliation of seeing Connor and Hank – anybody but him and Gavin – bring in the kid would be too much for him.

He rounded a corner and saw the boy run in front of him. He threw a glance back at him and Nines could hear a breathed ‘Oh shit’ wafting over. He grinned, much like the kid had before. It was only a question of time until he’d have him.  
The boy was now getting to another warehouse and frantically began climbing: He ran up the wall to grab the edge of a crate, pulling himself onto it and rolling onto his feet. From there it was another jump to the roof, and he disappeared from Nines’ view. But he was already airborne, scaling the crate in one jump, following the next step up to the roof effortlessly with superhuman strength.

He relished in the jerk the noise of his feet slamming down on the corrugated metal triggered in the kid and used his moment of panic: He sprinted over to grab his arm, only getting a hold of his jacket the agile human quickly shrugged off to get away from him. Nines followed, furious by the fact that he had come this close yet again. They ran over the roof, feet slamming down on the rusty metal and Nines was quickly gaining ground.  
Until suddenly the ground caved in and he broke through a patch of the roof. He fell onto wooden planks that failed to catch him and broke under his weight, making him drop another storey.

Nines laid there as damage warnings flooded his vision. Nothing serious, but still, the shock of having just fallen through what had thought to be solid ground had its effects. Over him in the hole in the roof, the head of the boy appeared. Nines zoomed in through the dust, he saw the kid was still searching for him.  
‘Nines, you okay?’, someone whispered next to him. Gavin.  
‘Yes.’  
‘He doesn’t know that. And he won’t expect me here. Pretend you need help, maybe we can lure him in.’

Nines nodded, barely visible. He simulated a cough once, twice, then groaned and hissed much like a human would do. The kid had followed the noise and located him, so Nines scrunched his face up in faked pain. He heard a distant cursed ‘Shit’ again and had to suppress a cocky grin as his preconstruction detected a 90% chance of success for their plan.  
‘Are you still there?’, he called out, modulating his voice a bit so it sounded more like an old radio. ‘Is anyone there? Please! I need help. Hello? I’m losing thirium, please! Help!’  
He heard footsteps above him. Away from the hole, then back towards it again. Silence.

‘Hey, you fuckers still gonna arrest me?’, the kid called down after a while.  
‘I… have to!’  
‘Hey, you ain’t doing shit like this. I’ll be free if I let you die there, so what’s in it for me if I help you?’  
Nines coughed again and groaned some more. ‘Shit. Fine. I promise I won’t arrest you. I’ll say you got away. But I won’t stop chasing you next time.’  
‘Deal, your metal ass can’t get me anyways!’

Again, the footsteps echoed through the warehouse and Nines could make out Gavin’s careful steps next to him.  
The door opened and let sunlight into the dark warehouse. The boy walked inside, approaching Nines warily. ‘Alright, robocop, how do I help yo-‘  
He didn’t even got to finish that sentence as Gavin tackled him to the ground and pulled his arms around his back to handcuff him.  
‘Phcking finally!’, Gavin cried out in triumph, while Nines stood up and dusted himself off.  
‘You lied to me!’, the kid whined. ‘You asshole betrayed me!’  
Nines sighed. ‘I don’t think so. I would have yet to arrest you to have told a lie. My partner on the other hand…’  
‘Fuck you!’  
Gavin laughed, helping the handcuffed kid up. ‘Hey, that’s usually my line.’

They waited until the car arrived to take the drug dealer away, then Nines joined Gavin sitting on some crates.  
‘Phck, I’ll be sore all over tomorrow from all that shitty parkour.’  
‘You didn’t have to follow me’, Nines muttered.  
Gavin threw him a look that made the android look away. ‘Alright, I’m thankful you were there.’  
‘That’s what I wanted to hear.’ He smiled and leaned back against the wall.  
‘I guess I still didn’t get him, huh?’ Gavin straightened again at the android’s unamused chuckle.  
‘Nines, what the hell? We got him, I don’t know what you are-‘  
‘ _You_ got him!’, Nines corrected. ‘I didn’t. If I had been alone, I wouldn’t have been able to trick him. I would have lost him again!’  
‘You are not supposed to do this alone’, Gavin softly reminded him, laying a hand on his knee. ‘That’s why there is a partner system, that’s why I am here for. Phck, Nines, I’m your friend. You are not supposed to live your life completely alone. We are a team.’  
‘I know…’  
‘I wouldn’t have been able to catch him. Phck, I had only been able to do so because you kept him busy on that roof. We are in this together.’  
Nines nodded, putting his hand on Gavin’s as a quiet thank you.

‘And we finally got this phcker!’

**Author's Note:**

> You can prompt a story like this yourself if you want! Just head over to my tumblr @fandom-necromancer, message me on twitter @Schreibmachin4 or contact me in any way!


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